Seattle Ironwoman

When I suffer loss, I tend to internalize my emotions, and push myself in other areas of my life to distract myself. I try not to think about it. The first time I suffered major loss was my Oma. I was 16. She had had cancer for 5 years and didn't tell us. I found out 3 months before she died, when after a fall down stairs, a nurse accidentally slipped to my dad that they couldn't give her a certain medication because it wouldn't work well with her chemo. We spent those last months with her in the hospital. By the time she passed, I was so angry, devastated, confused, lost. I couldn't believe someone I loved so much wouldn't tell me we had such limited time. I would have done so many things differently. I would have called her more. I still have her phone number memorized. I couldn't cope with all of the emotions, so instead of grieving, I rebelled. I tried to numb the pain any way I could. I lost who I was, for a year. To this day I still miss her, I still

I've never let fear of failure  hold me back from trying new things. I know that if I put my mind to something, that I will accomplish it. I might be scared, but that means it was a good goal. That's what my first marathon was all about, setting a scary goal and accomplishing it. When I was 23 I was starting to consider myself a "runner". I had run a  lot  of half marathons and realized that it was time to conquer a full marathon. I picked a race, a training plan, and got going. I did not miss a SINGLE training run. I ran 6 days a week, hit every single mile on my long runs, got a lot faster, and more confident in my running. My sister and I headed down to Portland with my family, Isaac, and two of my best friends. I woke up on race day scared but ready. I had put in the time, done the work, and was injury free. That morning was rainy and a little chilly. I had been running at 5am everyday, so I wore what I'd typically wear on those runs. This was my first m

What a year. 2015 was pretty stellar. Goal wise, I completed 3 triathlons, one with a top 3 finish in my age bracket and one being my first Ironman.  I became an Ironman . Pretty dope.  I got my first tattoo.  I went to Portland, Whistler, Kauai, Kona, San Francisco, Minneapolis, and had some great weekend getaways in our gorgeous state. I started focusing on trail running after Ironman, and found my next athletic pursuit - ultramarathons. Overall, 2015 was a great year. I'm not big on New Years Resolutions. I set goals throughout the year. If I don't have a goal I'm working towards, I feel lost. Instead, I like to take this time of year to reflect on the direction of my life and where I want to spend focus the coming year... 2016 will include: Running my first 50k. Completing a sub 14 hour Ironman. Travel. Travel. Travel. Cook more. I spent December running, just running. I've been running 6 days a week, running between 4-10 miles per run. I'm getti